Canadian Beauty

OPI Summer 2016 Infinite Shine Shades

Posted on July 19, 2016 by Henna

This summer OPI has released six new neutral shades of nail polish in their Infinite Shine formula, and they are everything!

Colours above (from left to right) are:

Don’t Ever Stop – Salmon

Hurry Up and Wait – tan

No Stopping Zone – dusky brownish rose

No Strings Attached – beige nude

Can’t Stop Myself – creamy peach

Staying Neutral on This One – light, slightly sheer, peachy pink

I’m a huge fan of neutral polishes because they take you everywhere. They’re on trend, can go from morning to night, and put the focus on hand jewelry instead of your polish. I definitely love wearing on-trend colours too, but sometimes I like the low-key elongating look of a good neutral polish.

The fact that OPI has six shades means that there are options for all skin tones. This polish won’t look just like your skin tone, but it’ll just be a natural nail colour option. I like the darkest shade (I wore it in this Youtube video and showed all the shades), and it’s still lighter than my skin tone.

All the colours apply evenly, and with someone of them, I could get opaque coverage with just one coat of nail polish. They last a long time if used with the Infinite Shine base coat and top coat, and the best part is that because they look so natural, you can barely see any grow out or chips, so your manicure looks flawless… even when it’s not!

They are $16.95 each, and available wherever OPI polishes are sold. No Stopping Zone is definitely a favourite of mine!

Posted in Summer 2016 | Tagged Infinite Shine, nail polish, OPI | Leave a comment

Wishlist: Drybar’s Baby Buttercup Blow Dryer

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Henna

Have you tried Drybar’s hair products? They are unreal – they all smell amazing and make your hair look SO good, thanks to having nourishing properties and hydrators. And now they have this cute little bright yellow hair dryer that seems all kinds of awesome.

Drybar is a chain on hair drying/styling salons out of L.A. (kind of like Blo, if you’ve heard of them), and so they know how to make good hair products.

This wee hair dryer is only $169! On to the wish list it goes!

What’s on your wish list right now?

Posted in Tools | Tagged Drybar | 2 Comments

Jump on Summer’s New Lipstick Trends

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Henna

This summer there are two brand new lipstick trends – jump on them now and they’ll take you into the fall season too.

The first is the ’90’s dark lip. Think dark eggplants, burgundy, deep chocolate brown, and even black and navy blue lipstick. The best way to wear these is matte and long-wearing.

The other new trend is metallic lip trend – also back from the 90’s. It’s might feel hard to get used to, but start with wearing colours you normally wear in just a metallic finish.

Jumping on new trends doesn’t have to cost you a lot of money thanks to NYX. Their new Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick is available in brand new trendy colours, and they also have a new Cosmic Metals Lip Cream. Each is $10.

What I love about the lip cream formula is that it doesn’t dry too fast. You apply it, have enough time to get it perfect, and then it sets to a long-wearing finish. Eating and drinking will take some of it off, but these lip creams really last and last. At the end of the day, they’re actually difficult to take off – you’ll need a wipe, makeup remover and then finally some soap. You need to get them on perfect and they stay on perfectly too.

The Suede lip creams are totally matte and feel soft on the lips. They are so easy to wear especially if your lips aren’t already dry.

The Cosmic Metals Lip Creams are not matte and actually finish to a glossy finish that’s a little sticky.

Pick them up at London Drugs for $10 each.

Posted in Summer 2016 | Tagged NYX | 2 Comments

New Live Clean Products for Men

Posted on July 16, 2016 by Henna

Live Clean is the brand that families love. They have awesome kids products, their hand soaps have a permanent place in my powder room, and now they have shampoos just for men.

Made with organic tea tree oil, organic peppermint oil, and organic jojoba oil, these shampoos not only clean the hair but leave it conditioned and smelling good too.

There are two options – classic clean, and a 2-in-1 (shampoo and conditioner).

I love that the formulas have astringent anti-bacterial properties (thanks to the tea tree oil) so that it helps take care of flakes and oil but without any unnecessary medications.

Give it a try – if you already love Live Clean products, this will be for you too.

Posted in Shampoo and Conditioner | Tagged Live Clean | Leave a comment

New Essie Gel Couture Polish Review

Posted on July 16, 2016 by Henna

Ok here’s the review!

People keep asking me what I think about this new nail polish system – a coloured polish and top coat – and yes, I’ve tried them. London Drugs was nice enough to give us a sample of the polish system and I was thrilled to try it – Essie promises high shine and a manicure that lasts up to two weeks.

The colour I got was 100 Pearls of Wisdom. It’s a pretty brownish red that has a bit of shimmer to it. The colour went on so smoothly and easily. I could have stopped at one coat, but I always do two because they last longer. I used one coat of the Essie Gel Couture Top Coat.

The colour looked great, there was tons of shine, but my polish chipped before even five days were over. I wasn’t impressed. All the other fingers chipped too and my polish didn’t look as great as it should have. It was shiny and pretty but the lasting power was not as good was what I’m used to. That said, that’s the only colour I tried and the top coat has great reviews on other polishes, so if anything try it out for yourself.

Pick up Essie Gel Couture polishes at London Drugs for $13.99.

Posted in Summer 2016 | Tagged Essie, nail polish | Leave a comment

The Body Shop Pinita Colada Collection

Posted on July 15, 2016 by Henna

Summer is here, and with that come the lovely smell of The Body Shop’s new Pinita Colada body range. A fresh blend of coconut and pineapple, this group of products smells amazing without being too sweet.

My favourite product is the Pinita Colada body butter. It smells great, but it’s not too heavy, absorbing into skin quickly and keeping it moisturized.

Delicious and effective, you can get the range at your local Body Shop boutique or here.

Posted in More Than Beauty | Tagged The Body Shop | Leave a comment

June Favourites Video!

Posted on July 11, 2016 by Henna

My favourite products from June – the video is now up!

Let me know what you think!

Posted in More Than Beauty | Tagged Favourites, June, Video | Leave a comment

Stampede-worthy Beauty? Watch me Here!

Posted on July 7, 2016 by Henna

Did you miss me on BT Calgary this week? I was talking about beauty products that will last through Stampede!

You can watch the whole thing here.

What would you like to see me cover?!

Posted in More Than Beauty | Tagged BT Calgary, Stampede | Leave a comment

Make Up For Ever Aqua XL

Posted on July 4, 2016 by Henna

I’ve been using Make Up For Ever products long enough to know that they’ve had an Aqua eyeliner before – it’s their long-wearing, easy to apply eyeliner in so many colours so that you can use it like eyeshadow and create looks that just stay put on your eyes.

Now they have their Aqua XL eye pencils which come in a range of colours and finishes – my favourite being the matte black, and the D-62 a diamond brown that works great to do a smudgy smoky eye. Those two pencils used together do an easy enough makeup look that doesn’t even need the help of a primer to last. Layer with your favourite powder eyeshadow on top, and your look will really stand the test of a hot humid day.

The pencils are also waterproof, which makes them perfect for a day at the pool too.

Check out the whole range in person at Sephora stores – the texture is worth trying yourself and the pencils come in a range of finishes – matte, diamond, satin, iridescent, and metallic.

$21 each.

Posted in Summer 2016 | Tagged Make Up For Ever | Leave a comment

Rescue Your Nails – Without Going Into a Salon!

Posted on July 3, 2016 by Henna

My rescue kit for my nails right now.

CND Cuticle Eraser. This cuticle cream contains AHA to help exfoliate dead and dry skin. I found that this cream worked well but it didn’t smell great, and so it was best used sparingly. It’s interesting to see that it uses ingredients that are in skincare too, which explains why using skincare feels so good on my nails.
CND Rescue Rxx Daily Keratin Treatment. This is a treatment for bare nails to help make them stronger and it really works. It’s a keratin-infused oil that’s easy to rub into your nails. Just use it twice a day to help your nails become stronger. You’ll notice a difference within a week of use – if you can leave your nails bare for that long.
CND Scrubfresh. This is a nail cleaner and a nail polish remover in one. It contains acetone which is drying but super effective at getting nail polish off quickly.
CND Solaroil. After you put nail polish on (and even if you don’t), coat your cuticles with CND Solaroil. It has pure almond oil in it so it moisturizes and makes your cuticles look super healthy. I keep this on my desk and apply it daily to keep my nails looking great.
CND Vinylux Weekly Polish and CND Vinylux Weekly Top Coat. This is a winning combo for having your nail polish last a long time. There’s no scratching, denting, or chipping for up to seven days – I’ve tried it and it really does last!

These products have made my nails look and feel healthier – and the Rescue Rxx and the Solaroil have made their way into my daily routine because they’re so easy to use.

CND can be purchased at your local Trade Secrets or Chatters. They are salon quality products (CND also makes Shellac) so they work better than your average drugstore competitors.

Posted in More Than Beauty | Tagged CND | Leave a comment